Paris aim for Champions League progress

Their domestic season, and quest for a fourth successive Ligue 1 crown, might only just be kicking off after a lengthy pre-season but Paris Saint-Germain are already focused on their UEFA Champions League campaign, with the semi-finals their aim.

This summer Laurent Blanc's side played a host of European giants in a mammoth 18-day tour of north America. They recorded victories over Benfica, Fiorentina and Manchester United, suffering only one defeat, on penalties against Chelsea, as they racked up the air miles in a busy travelling schedule.

Their final game, in Montreal, was a 2-0 win over last season's Ligue 1 runners-up Lyon in Saturday's Trophée des Champions, and their good form in this summer's friendlies augurs well for a tilt at the UEFA Champions League. After three successive quarter-final eliminations, anticipation is building for the coming campaign.

There are certainly reasons for optimism, with Paris having already beaten several potential UEFA Champions League rivals this summer. Furthermore, the UEFA Champions League is clearly top of the club's to-do list having swept the board in France in 2014/15, winning the last six domestic trophies. So what's next?

Having only just got his hands on the Trophée des Champions, captain Thiago Silva said: "This year's team is strong in defence and with Ibra [Zlatan Ibrahimović] and Cava [Edinson Cavani] we have first-class players up front. I think we can work to win the Champions League this season. It's everybody's dream here."

Blanc added: "Demands grow more and more in Paris [regarding the Champions League], and we're trying to live up to expectations by improving the team. Paris are among the biggest teams. I think we'll break our quarter-final duck." Not a pre-season press conference has gone by without a question on the Champions League and the answer was always the same: "Go one better" than previous years.

Zlatan Ibrahimović has a shot against Lyon©Getty Images

With this in mind, Paris are hoping to complete the signing of Ángel Di María. The Copa América runner-up is in Qatar to have his medical and is expected to commit to a long-term deal after Paris agreed a reported €65m fee with Manchester United.

Di María's fellow Argentinians Javier Pastore and Ezequiel Lavezzi will not be available for Friday's Ligue 1 opener at LOSC Lille having resumed training later than other players. New signings Kevin Trapp – brought to compete with Salvatore Sirigu in the goal – and Benjamin Stambouli are already up to speed.

Defender Serge Aurier has not forgotten that Paris went ahead of Lyon only on matchday 30 of 38 in 2014/15, promising: "We'll look to make a better start than last season". The signs are promising: on Saturday Paris were comfortable winners against Lyon, who did not record a shot on goal until the closing stages, their coach Hubert Fournier admitting: "The gap is too big, but I'm not surprised." Only the biggest teams in Europe seem to be able to stop Paris this season.